Monday, October 13, 2008

Yoga for the Face

A friend was recently complaining about feeling stressed. So stressed in fact that she grinds her teeth at night. Yikes!

This made me wonder. Which yoga poses might be good for relieving facial tension? I thought of Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (upward dog), Bujangasana (Cobra), and even Tadasana (Mountain) because of the self-awareness it helps activate.

Many of my readers are talented and experienced yogis. Can you think of other asanas that I might recommend to my friend?

2 comments:

Elizabeth Marie said...

That's so sweet of you to suggest those poses! Actually I love yoga - I used to practice regularly but I haven't found any classes I like since I moved up north. I would like to start a home practice but I'm always struggling with it because I'm not sure if I'm executing the postures correctly and I don't have a big mirror to look in while I practice lol. Do you have any tips/suggestions there?

Marie said...

You know, here's what I would suggest. Get a couple of yoga DVDs that you like and that give good instructions. Think about your own learning style. Are you the kind of kinesthetic learner who can mimic body motions by watching someone do them? Or do you learn by listening to and following directions?

Then, put in the DVDs and just go along with them and focus on having fun. Put your awareness into your body and think about how you feel. If it feels good, do it. If it hurts or feels awkward, don't.

And, for now, don't even care about how you look or if you're "right" or not. Just enjoy the poses and the stretch and relax with yourself.

Later, your body will learn the asanas. Then if you want to be more "classic" in your poses, you can work towards that. But, for now, just get started and have fun. After all, who's going to see you anyway?? :)

Oh, and for goodness sake, BREATHE. Let the flow of your breath open and move your body. We tend to hold our breath or become shallow when we concentrate and strive. That's one reason we feel stress!

Namaste,
Marie